[fur]

You need one!

Seriously.

My setup is revo -> non-headphone amp -> dt880, i wasn't looking in buying an headamp because the interesting ones are waaay too expensive. But now i changed my opinion.

Today i tried Izotope Ozone, most of you know, it's some kind of tubeamp simulator. I used "warm and airy" preset and turned off the eq and room crap. It's just WOW!

Before using it i didn't noticed how flat these things sound.
Now i can feel and touch the music, it just comes to live.
Sometimes it can sound synthetic in bass and treble, but that's to be expected with software solutions ofcourse, still better than not using it, though.
I hope with a real tube amp, it can only get better.

Any other 880 owners who tried it or are going to do it now?
I'd like to hear other comments.

Greets

 

[JaZZ]

Welcome to Head-Fi!

This is a delicate subject -- tube amps are actually meant to have different strengths and flaws than solid-state amps on an equal level (roughly spoken) and not just to add euphonic colorations/distortion to the signal. Of course there are more or less typical (primarily 2nd order) tube distortions; but there should also be some of the higher-order/odd solid-state distortions avoided and thus a more natural/organic sound provided. So the software-induced distortion represents just one dimension of the real tube sound.

My experiments with the direct path (headphones driven directly by a DAC's line-out amp, via a resistor-based attenuator) have showed me that tube amps don't necessarily alter the original signal more than solid-state amps (if not even the opposite!). So you shouldn't mix up the «tube sound» emulation of your Ozone software with the sound of a real tube amp. BTW, all amps alter the sound more or less -- the euphonic smoothing by an amp is a commonly (unconsciously) accepted phenomenon.

 

[fur]

Good you brought the topic up too, i was allready wondering if it's overdoing the effect, it gives a real _big_ difference turning it on/off. Sadly i can't try out any headphone amps around here, be it Tube or SS, to see if it's just my existing setup giving super flat steril boring sound

ps. Within Ozone, i also noticed there's a little too much compression going on, there's parameters to change it, dunno how it works exactly though

Maybe someone else here knows more about it?

pps. it's not "tube sound" but specificly "tube amp" emulation

 

[BELMONT]

fur,

Have you also tried a solid state amplifier in comparison? I felt the same way as you after getting my SS amp. I have yet to try a tube amp though..

 

[fur]

Nope, haven't tried one yet, no shops around here.

Is no one else here using both Ozone and a real tubeamp of any kind? i'd really like to hear if it's overdoing the effect completely or accurate.

 

[spaceman]

I am really enjoying the sound with my 880s and Corda HA-2

 

[Hajime]

I'm enjoying mine with my Meta42.

That being said, I'm really debating with myself whether I want to switch over to tubes or not. Tubes just sound... so fulfilling...

 

[Nights_85]

not to mention how pretty they look

*sigh* I wish I had a tube amp... let alone headphone amp.

 

[enak]

Im using the corda blue (ha-1 blue mod) and it sounds great with the dt880 when i had it.

Fur, i dont think you should use a simulator, but rather try and audition the real thing, there may be a head-fier in your area that will let you have a listen to the 'real thing'.

 

[TravelLite]

Quote:

Originally posted by fur Is no one else here using both Ozone and a real tubeamp of any kind? i'd really like to hear if it's overdoing the effect completely or accurate.

fur, I agree that Ozone for Winamp is indeed a remarkable software DSP. That's not too surprising since it's based on iZotope's 64-bit pro version.

And yes, Ozone's <Default> preset does sound somewhat similar to the DT880 and the tube amp I use.

But it would a little naive to expect exactly the same kind of sound from any tube amplifier in any system. After all, many users "roll" in different tubes to modify their amp's sound. Not to mention all the sonic differences between sources and interconnects that people use. In other words, there's a lot of different variables in play.

So, assuming that you can currently power your DT880 properly and you intend to stick with computer-based audio, my suggestion might be to learn to work with (and enjoy) Ozone for the time being.

OTOH, if you're having other issues with your system then I certainly wouldn't blame you for looking at additional outboard gear. And a tube amp might well be at the top of your list if you've discovered that you really enjoy that kind of sound.

TravelLite